With the growing demand for high-quality natural product extracts, dimethyl ether as a new green solvent operating under subcritical conditions has exhibited notable benefits for the extraction of lipids, carotenoids, and long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids, attributable to its distinctive physicochemical characteristics. This paper reviews the progress in the application of dimethyl ether in natural product extraction, focusing on its advantages in treating biomass with high moisture content, improving extraction efficiency, and reducing energy consumption and environmental load, with a view to providing reference for the application of subcritical dimethyl ether in extraction.